With the Hero Killer detained, the wounded heroes-in-training were brought to the hospital. Alone, Bulla sat in silence looking out the window. She hadn't remembered showing up, nor did she remember much after the Hero Killer fell unconcious. The sound of Endeavor's large footsteps lightly echoed throughout the room. "I'm sorry for my behavior tonight, Mr. Endeavor. I understand, now, that there's a lot more I need to learn about being a hero."
Looking over, his arms hung at his side, and his regular glare didn't waver. However, his next action shocked Bulla to her core. "No, I'm sorry." He said angrily. "When everyone else failed to act, you pushed on. You cut your own leg just to overwhelm the fear that had frozen you." It was as if it killed him to admit what he had just said. "I was wrong about you. I believe that you may have the power to rival even my Shoto. So stay sharp... He's my perfect creation, and I can only take him so far." Endeavor told her before walking away.
Shocked by the experience, Bulla was broken out of her trance by the sound of a knock at her door. "C-Come in."
"Ms. Brief, I'm glad to see you're doing better." A plain-looking man in a long white coat said as he walked in with a police officer.
"Long time, no see, kid." The officer said with a smile. "How have you been?"
"Hey, Officer Hiwajima!" She said with glee. "I'm doing alright! Pan and I got into UA High based on recommendation, and we were doing our internships this week!"
"Well, I'm glad to hear the two of you are doing better. You were a mess when I first saw you girls, but enough of that for now. I came to let you know that your friends are in a bit of trouble. The chief is with them right now to explain, but see, without Provisional Licenses, they acted with Quirks to pursue a villain. So in order to keep it off the record, the Hero Killer will be reported to have been detained by Endeavor. Since you were with him during the Hosu Incident, the usage of your Quirk will be pardoned under the guise of having been allowed by the Number 2 Hero." Officer Hiwajima explained.
"Wait, Tenya, Izuku, and Todoroki stopped the Hero Killer?" She asked as she remembered the scene from earlier. That's right... They had him in bounds with other heroes. I didn't think they'd be able to do that on their own... I have to make sure I don't fall behind.
"Right, well, despite their wounds being pretty bad, it's nothing they won't recover from. You, however, made a self-applied wound that you could not feel the severity of in that moment. Your cut was dangerously close to your femoral artery, which could have meant death in a matter of minutes. Not being a medical expert, Endeavor played it on the safe side and cauterized your wound. You passed out from the pain, of course, but you should be just fine after a couple weeks of healing. Just don't put too much strain your leg, we'll send you home with some crutches to use until your leg is doing better." He explained.
As she pulled her gown up to her thighs, she could see the large burn mark left behind by Endeavor. "Oh, that's right... That's why I don't remember much after the Hero Killer..."
"Well, you're still in recovering, so I'll leave you be." The doctor told her as he turned away.
"Excuse me," Bulla called out before the doctor could leave, "how are my friends?"
"They're fine. They're somewhat ruffled, but they'll bounce back with no issues. Now get your rest."
Two days had passed since Bulla had been committed to the hospital. While watching the news, Bulla held herself above the foot of her bed and did hand-stand pushups. "Bulla!? You should be resting to recover!" Midoriya said as he entered the room.
"Izuku! Glad to see you're doing okay!" She told him, continuing her workout and disregarding his concern. "Where's Todoroki and Tenya?"
"Oh, they've been discharged already. Ii- I mean, Tenya went to stay with his parents. And Todoroki went back to his dad's agency."
"Aw man, he's really gonna get ahead of me now!" Bulla whined as she lowered herself and sat on her bed.
"Bulla, why do you want to be a hero?" Midoirya suddenly asked as she lied back, putting her hands behind her head.
"Izuku... My father was a great man. Before he passed, he told me to get strong enough to protect this world, and that's exactly what I'm going to do. So I'm going to get stronger, and become the best hero." She said, looking up to the ceiling, a content smile on her face.
"Right... I'm sorry for your loss, and I'm sure if he could see you, he'd be proud." Midoriya told her.
"Yeah, but you want to be the number one, don't you?" She asked, causing his eyes to widen. "I can tell by that expression that I'm on the money. It was your fight with Todoroki, and the way I see you following All Might. You want to be just like him, and of course, that includes remaining the number one." His face switched into one of solemn determination with a nod. "Then I guess that means we're rivals. If that's the case," Bulla sat up and held a fist out, her smile never wavering, "then I guess I'll meet you at the top, and challenge you for the spot of number one, Deku."
Midoriya met her smile and held up his fist. "I'll see you at the top, Eschalot." Their fists tapped lightly, and Midoriya returned to his room to prepare for his release. Later that night, As she watched Midoriya leave, her door suddenly swung open.
"Bulla!" Pan called out as she flew across the room and wrapped her arms around her best friend. "What do you think you're doing going out and getting hurt, dumbass!"
"Hey, hey! I'm fine, Pan!" She told her. "What are you even doing here?"
"I got the word from Mr. Kan! He said that Aizawa asked him to contact me with your hospital information, since he knows we're close!" She explained.
"That's right." A familiar voice said as Jiro walked in. "Death Arms brought us along so that we could visit."
"Jiro!" Bulla called out with a smile. "How has your internship been going?"
"Hard!" Jiro cried out. "He's been working us out like hell! I don't understand how Son can keep up!"
"Hehe!" With Pan's giggle, she stepped back and gave her best friend some breathing room. "We helped with a hostage situation today. Unfortunately, I was only waiting outside the facility with his sidekick in case anyone tried to escape."
"At least he trusted you enough to know you could help with a villain escape." Bulla tried to tell her with a smile.
"Yeah, but I still wish I could have done something more!" She whined, shaking her fists.
"So Class Rep, what even happened?" Jiro asked. "What got you in here?"
"Oh, I um...I let my fear control my actions, so I had to inflict a wound to snap myself out of it. That Stain fellow was really-"
"HUUH!? You fought with the Hero Killer?!" Jiro cried out.
"Uh, not really... I managed to make it on the scene at the last minute, but by then Endeavor had just about worn him to passing out." She explained, scratching her nose with her lie.
"That's insane, how was he?!" Pan asked.
"I'm not quite sure. Scary, definitely, but all I saw was the Hero Killer passing out. Although, Todoroki, Izuku, and Tenya were pretty badly hurt, and the other heroes in the area could barely move."
"It's good to see you made it out of there, Class Rep." Jiro told her with a smile. "If you're still kicking, I'm going to get back to Death Arms. Come on down when you're ready, Saiyaman."
Bulla's eyes widened as she heard the familiar name. "Alright, Earphone Jack." As she walked away, Pan caleld out to her. "Still don't know why you didn't go by Earphone Jill!"
"Earphone Jill. Like that old story my mom used to read to us when you slept over. Jack and Jill." Bulla told her with a smile.
"That's what I said! Apparently that same story exists in this world! By a different person, in a different way, but roughly the same." Pan agreed. "So what kind of wound are we talking?" Without saying a word, Bulla slightly pulled up her medical gown, revealing the burn scar on leg, perpendicular along the front length of her thigh, somewhat slim and discolored. "Well on the bright side, every great warrior has their scars."
"Oh please, the only warriors in your family is your great-grandpa Bardock. And I don't think he was the cooing type when it came to your dad." Bulla told her.
"Shut up! I'm trying to cheer you up!" The girls shared a laugh before Pan embraced her dear friend. "Do you know when they're going to release you?"
"Tonight's my last night, then I leave in the morning. I'm supposed to work with a crutch for about a week, and I'll be back to full strength the following week. Although, you know that us Saiyans live by different rules." Bulla explained with a coy smile.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you were up and running by next week." Pan said as she released her friend from her grasp.
"Yeah, to be frank, I don't feel like I need the crutch. I feel like I can walk well enough, but my burn still stings."
"Well, I'm happy to hear you're doing good for the most part, and I hate to have to leave you behind, but I shouldn't keep Death Arms waiting forever. He was nice enough to bring us out here, after all."
"It's alright, I'm really happy you came. Don't worry one bit about me, I'll be back to fighting shape in no time!" Bidding one last farewell, the girls parted ways, leaving Bulla alone in her room. The excitement of the last few days finally began to catch up with her, and she lied back, allowing herself to drift to sleep.
The following week started, and Bulla returned to her classes. While she was out of commission for hero work, although temporarily, she helped around the orphanage to pass the time. Due to her negligence, her sword was confiscated, and she had no choice but to train in secret. She sat at her desk, quietly mulling over a heavy thought.
The laughing and chatter in the background faded out of earshot until someone lightly squeezed her shoulder. "Bulla!"
"Huh?!" She turned around, seeing one of her closest friends' worried expression.
"You haven't really spoken since you sat down." Yaoyorozu told her with concern. "Are you alright? I didn't think a meeting with the Hero Killer would have rattled you so much."
For a moment, Bulla didn't have anything to say. After a moment of silence, she looked down at her notepad and then met Yaoyorozu's eyes. "Dimension Splitter." All Yaoyorozu could do was stare. "Is that not good?"
"Good for what? What are you talking about?" She asked.
Passing her notebook, Yaoyorozu began to scan the list of names. "I once said to myself that every great sword has a name. My blade needs a name if I want to master it."
"Oh, is that so?" As she looked over them, nothing particularly stuck out to her.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll have a name for it someday, I'm sure. And when I do, it'll be perfect!" Bulla said excitedly as she pat her wrapped sword.
"I know you'll come up with something." Yaoyorozu told her with a smile.
Class had soon started, and the students were directed to suit up and meet All Might at Training Field Gamma. "Hope you're ready to return to our lessons!" All Might said excitedly as the students gathered around him. "Today it's Hero Basic Training. Feels like I haven't seen you in a while, so welcome back!" Quickly, he explained the rescue training that was about to begin, and randomly assigned four groups of five.
Group 1, consisting of Jiro, Iida, Ashido, Hagakure, and Koda, took to the field, and the remaining students watched from the safety of the viewing platform. As they watched, Iida rushed through the maze from the ground while Jiro, Hagakure, and Koda did their best to navigate about. The first one to reach All Might was Ashido, who had the most flexibility with traversing the piping.
Group 2, with Sato, Tokoyami, Bakugo, Aoyama, and Kirishima, wasn't so straight forward. Sato and Kirishima did what they could to navigate about while Aoyama, Tokoyami, and Bakugo took to the sky. Although they were even at first, the light from Aoyama's Navel Laser and Bakugo's Explosions forced back Tokoyami and Dark Shadow, and Aoyama was left behind due to his stomach ache, allowing Bakugo to reach All Might first.
Looking around, Bulla found Shoji and approached him in a hurry. "Hey, Shoji!"
"Oh, what is it, Brief?" He asked, breaking his attention from the monitor in front of him.
Holding out her sword, she bowed her head lightly. "Could you keep my sword safe for me? I'm afraid I won't be able to move at 100% with it on my back!"
"Yeah, no problem." He said, reaching out and wrapping his hand around the sheathed sword. As Bulla loosened her grip, his eyes widened, quickly wrapping a second hand around the object. "A little heavy, isn't it?"
"Yeah, just a little. But I'm going against Asui and Mineta, so I have to be on my A-Game!" She told him with a smile. "So, I'm counting on you to keep it safe!"
"Right. I'll keep it close until you finish. Do your best out there."
"Absoluetly!" She said as she reported to Training Field Gamma.
Group 3, with Mineta, Asui, Bulla, Kaminari, and Yaoyorozu, begin with the bell sounding. Bulla blasted off towards the objective, continuously touching down and blasting off again, but as she was nearing the objective, a series of purple balls flew forward, sticking to the piping effortlessly.
In a blur, Mineta flew past, bouncing from pipe to pipe. "Hahaha! Watch and learn, Class Rep! This kind of environment was made for me!"
"Way to go, Mineta! Just when I was losing hope in you!" Bulla called out as she increased her power output.
She actually believes in me! The beautiful class representative Brief believes in-! With his thoughts clouded, Mineta flew face first into a large pipe that he hadn't noticed.
"Sorry, Mineta! Maybe next time!" She said as Asui was further ahead. With All Might quickly starting to fade into view, Bulla stopped and held her ground, allowing herself to build up energy. "Galaxy Chaser!" In an instant, she zipped past her friend and touched down at the platform.
"Thank you so much for saving me, hero!" All Might said as he held out a sash for his savior. Much to her disappointment, All Might's hero was Yaoyorozu, who took the sash out of his hands.
"Momo!? How did you get here so fast!?" Bulla asked, pointing at her friend.
"I just happened to be the closest to the objective. I was lucky to be able to respond so quickly." She explained with a smile, putting her sash on.
"Ribbit. Good job, Momo." Asui told her.
Group 4 began just as expected. Between Shoji, Todoroki, Sero, and Midoriya, as well as Uraraka, who was beginning to practice her ability to float herself for brief periods, not a moment was wasted. However, it was inevitably Todoroki, who managed to win the race riding his ice wave.
I managed to beat Todoroki at the Sports Festival... But he was on a handicap. If I'm not careful, he'll pass me for sure! Bulla thought to herself as she watched the screen in front of her. With the training coming to an end, the girls made their way to the locker room to change.
"Hey, you changed your costume, Bulla." Yaoyorozu pointed out as Bulla removed her breastplate.
"Yeah, I saw Midnight and decided I wanted to change it up. No point in showing so much skin on my part." She explained as she packed her breastplate into her designated suitcase.
"I'm sure it's nice to have the option. I had to learn how to be comfortable in my skin. After all, I produce objects from my Quirk through my skin, so it'd be a hinderance otherwise." Yaoyorozu told her as she removed her belt and hair tie.
"You know, your hair really is beautiful, Momo. I wish you'd let it down more often." With a smile, Bulla's words warmed Yaoyorozu's heart.
"Hey, quiet down! The boys are yelling next door!" Jiro told the girls. Turning around, Bulla could see Jiro leaning against the wall.
"Wait, are you eavesdropping on the boys?" Bulla asked her. "You can't do that!"
"Quiet down! That little perv's screaming about something!" She yelled as she listen careful. Not even a second passed before she began to grit her teeth, shooting her earphone jack through the hole in the wall.
"Thanks, Jiro!" Ashido told her angrily.
"I'll talk to the teachers about having this hole patched immediately." Yaoyorozu told said.
Continuing to change, Bulla thought about the situation. "Just as I was gaining hope in you, Mineta." She said to herself, closing her locker and sealing her suitcase.